Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1887-05-21
THE MARTINSBURG HERALD, SATURDAY,

an Act approved March, 20, 1871,
entitled, 6 An Act to provide for the
funding and payment Of the public
debt, wiz, Bond No,--,with in-
terest amounting to-dollars.
Payment of said ONE-THIRD with
interest thereon, at the rates of Six
per Cent per Annum, will be pro-
vided for in accordance with such
settlement as shall hereafter be had
between the State of Virginia and
West Virginia, in regard to the
public debt OF the State of Virginia
existing at the time of its dismem-
berment, and the State of Virginia
holds said bonds so far as unfunded
in trust for the holder hereof or his
assigns.
In Testimony whereof, this Ger.
tifcate has been signed by the
Treasurer and countersigned by the
Second Auditor as provided by law.
--Second AaditOr.
SEAL -, Treas. Comb of Va.
The payment Of this certificate is
to be "provided for in accordance
with such settlement as shall here.
after be had between the State Of
Virginia and West Virginia." sc.
This language qualities, as it seems
to us, very essentially the under.
standing expressed by Mr.. Faulkner
yesterday on the floor of the Senate.
Its meaning seems to be that what.
ever Virginia gets from West Vir-
ginia in settlement she will pay over
to the holders of those certificates,
and nothing more.-Intelligencer of
Jan. "a, 1879. @
Editor Inteligencer IL have read
your courteous and respectful criti.
cism upon my remarks made in the
Senate yesterday, upon the subject
of what was at one time very alb
surdly and ignorantly quoted as
"West Virginia Certificates" but
which are now more properly known
on the stock board as the "Deferred
Certificates of Virginia" You diff
fer from my construction of the legal
effect of these certificates, and think
that they simply mean "that what
ever Virginia gets from West Vir-
GINA on settlement she will pay
over to the holders of those certlfi.
Gates, and nothing MORE" This. l
think, has never been the con-
structiOn put upon these EVIL
dences of debt by any of the public
men of Virginia. They have, l
think, uniformly conceded that just
to the extent that the ascertained
Indebtedness of West Virginia shall
fall short of the amount of those
certificates lover fifteen millions of
dollars) will an immediate llabili.
ty result to Virginia to make pro.
vision for the residue of said debt.
1t was no purpose of Virginia, in
her Funding Act of 1871, to repudi.
ate any portion of her then existing
debt. She then "funded two
thirds of her debt and left "unfun-
ed with the consent of the bond
holders, One-third to await the result
of a settlement with West Virginia.
This is all that she then asked of
her creditors and that was prompt
ly accorded to her. And such, it
seems to me, is the only legal con-
struction that can be given to the
copy of the certificats published by
you. That paper recognizes an
existing Indebtedness by Virginia;
it provides that the debt shall bear
interest at the rate of six per centum
per annum that the State of Vir-
ginia is to hold that proportion of
the surrendered bonds as part of
her unfunded debt in trust for the
holders of the certificates, and that
they are to be paid by whoms or
course, by the obligor Virginia, in
accordance with such settlement as
shall thereafter be made between
the State of Virginia and West Vir.
ginia. If upon such settlement be-
tween the two States, West Virginia
shall be found indebted to Virginia
to the full amount OF these certifi-
Gates she would expect to receive
from us in some form the sum nee
essary to discharge them. If, as
our former Commissioners estimated,
that Indebtedness be one million of
dollars, then Virginia would have to
account to her creditors tor the re.
naming fourteen millions. If West
Virginia was found not indebted at
all, the entire remaining unfunded
debt would Immediately fall back
upon Virginia. No other view, l
respectfully submit, has ever been
taken of this unfunded portion of
the debt of Virginia, and any other
view would impnte to that Common.
wealth an undisguised reputation
of one.third of her debt, which has
never before been charged upon the
Funding Act of 1871. e "a.
1t is true, and | regret TO see it,
differing from the'policy of 1871, the
spirit of forcible re.adjustment is
now strong and may yet be trium-
plant in Virginia; and yet with all
this disastrous influence now unhap.
PLY operating upon her public
councils, do not believe that you
could get one prominent member
of the Legislature of that State, to
give to these certificates the re-
pudiating effect which your con
struction would give to the Funding
act OF 1871. Very respectfully,